A doctor with 30 years experience has written a letter to the British Medical Journal outlining his concerns regarding the lack of seriousness taken with regards to men suffering from Erectile Dysfunction. 

Dr Hackett who is a consultant in Urology (sexual health), states in his letter that he was ‘disturbed to once again see an article on Cardiovascular risk that totally ignores the massive evidence base linking Erectile Dysfunction with Cardiovascular risk’.  He then goes on to write, ‘For years, I have seen patients referred with Erectile Dysfunction after a coronary event to hear that they developed Erectile Dysfunction two or three years beforehand, went to their General Practitioner, but were dismissed’.

‘Men live seven to eight years less than women.  Erectile Dysfunction is the manifestation of vascular disease in smaller arteries and gives a two to three year early warning of myocardial infarction.  Erectile Dysfunction carries a 50% additional risk of coronary events, a level comparable to moderate smoking or positive first degree relative family history.  Erectile Dysfunction in type 2 Diabetes is a better predictor of Coronary risk than HbA¹c, hypertension, microalbuminuria, or hyperlipidaemia.  Over 50% of men with type 2 Diabetes are hypogonadal, which carries a 60% additional risk of early cardiovascular death’.

‘Despite this evidence we don’t even screen for Erectile Dysfunction or Low Testosterone in type 2 Diabetes or patients with Coronary Heart Disease.  We prescribe drugs for Coronary Heart Disease that makes Erectile Dysfunction worse, even though there are drug treatments as effective which improve it, and then make the patients pay privately because we treat Erectile Dysfunction as a recreational or “lifestyle” issue’.

‘Continuing to ignore these issues on the basis that cardiologists feel uncomfortable mentioning the word erection to their patients is no longer acceptable and probably clinically negligent’¹

If what Dr Hackett states is true, isn’t it time that general screening for men suffering from Erectile Dysfunction was made available?

¹BMJ 2008;337:a2166